The consortium led by Viva Republica, operator of the popular mobile money transfer service Toss, was granted preliminary approval by the financial authorities Monday to launch the nation’s third internet-only bank.Following the Financial Services Commission’s decision, the company said it plans to establish Toss Bank soon after final approval in the first half of 2021. The move is expected to increase competition in the online-only banking sector which has only two operators now --

Market Dec. 17, 2019

South Korean budget app Bank Salad said Friday it will start providing tie-up services with internet-only Kakao Bank later this month, allowing users to manage their online bank accounts more efficiently in line with the launch of open banking services.Financial technology firm Rainist, which operates Bank Salad, had launched a task force to prepare for the services in partnership with Kakao Bank, ahead of Dec. 18, when financial authorities will formally greenlight operations of open banking se

Market Dec. 13, 2019

Among emerging market stocks, South Korean shares were most offloaded by overseas investors last month as a result of Asia’s fourth-largest economy’s reduced weighting in the Morgan Stanley Capital International emerging markets index, a report by a local brokerage said Thursday.According to Yuanta Securities, foreigners net sold South Korean shares worth nearly $3 billion in November alone, which marked the largest volume among 10 major emerging markets during the same period. 

Market Dec. 12, 2019

South Korea’s bourse operator, the Korea Exchange, said Tuesday that it will establish a clear definition of algorithmic trading and adopt various risk management systems next year to prevent destabilization of the local stock market. “As our task for 2020, we will adopt a management system for algorithmic trading, which has become a regularized practice,” KRX Chairman Jung Ji-won said at an end-of-year press briefing. “By establishing a clear definition of algorithmic tr

Market Dec. 10, 2019

South Korean brokerage Mirae Asset Daewoo said Tuesday that it received a presidential award at the 26th Corporate Innovation Awards for its efforts to create new markets through innovation and change, while boosting venture capital investment.The Corporate Innovation Awards, co-hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, recognize local firms in various sectors that have proven successful in areas related to corporate innovation.  Ac

Market Dec. 10, 2019

South Korea’s working-age population is expected to shrink the fastest among key economies over the next two decades, a report released by the World Trade Organization said Monday, with risks tied to the nation’s low birthrate and aging society looming over its economy. According to the World Trade Report 2019, Korea is unlikely to see an increase in its overall population by 2040, but its workforce is expected to shrink by 17 percent in the same period. This marks the steepest decli

Economy Dec. 9, 2019

Korean investors have been turning their attention toward the real estate market, reflected in an increase in mortgage lending, while cash flows in the equity market have been overall stagnant, recent data showed. According to data released by the Bank of Korea last month, the outstanding balance of mortgage loans held by banks and other financial institutions here came to a combined 830.3 trillion won ($700.5 billion) as of September. The latest data is a noteworthy jump from the corresponding

Market Dec. 8, 2019

With stocks on major bourses failing to satisfy the appetite of South Korean investors and brokerages, the unlisted securities market has been gaining high popularity, buoyed by growing interest in startups.Unlisted stocks largely remained a foreign concept for domestic investors until 2014, when the Korea Financial Investment Association upgraded and rebranded its over-the-counter trading platform Freeboard -- which was launched in 2005 -- to K-OTC. OTC markets around the globe serve as a platf

Market Dec. 4, 2019

The chief executives of around 10 major brokerages in South Korea are set to end their terms in the first quarter of 2020, data from the Financial Supervisory Service showed Monday, signaling an industrywide leadership reshuffle. But market watchers also expect many of them to extend their average two-year terms based on their performance. CEOs who led strong earnings this year are likely to retain their positions due to the lack of major issues that usually prompt a reshuffle, according to Hwan

Market Dec. 2, 2019

South Korea’s central bank on Friday left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 1.25 percent, while cutting its economic growth forecast for this year to the lowest level in a decade. The widely expected decision to keep its policy rate frozen follows the Bank of Korea’s Monetary Policy Board’s move in October to trim the rate by 25 basis points to the current rate. It had come merely three months after cutting the rate to 1.5 percent in July. The central bank is likely to m

Economy Nov. 29, 2019

Provincial bank-led financial institution JB Financial said Thursday that its latest robust performance was driven by efforts to center its management style and work culture on communication. The new management style was adopted by the group’s Chairman Kim Ki-hong, who was appointed earlier this year. According to his philosophy of transparent management, the company must be able to communicate well internally in order to communicate smoothly with its clients. Kim’s efforts bega

Market Nov. 28, 2019

Despite an overall sluggish insurance industry, Kyobo Life Insurance is making headway against industry rivals with strong credit ratings, solid earnings reports and its long-standing support for education. South Korea’s third-largest life insurer earlier this month received the best ratings of any local insurance company from global rating agencies, earning an A+ from Fitch and an A1 from Moody’s.Kyobo first acquired the A1 rating from Moody’s in 2015, becoming the first local

Market Nov. 28, 2019

South Korea’s money supply to gross domestic product ratio came to 151.5 percent last year, higher than the Organization for Economic Cooperation Development average, data from the World Bank and Korea Center for International Finance showed Wednesday. The country’s high money supply-GDP ratio -- a measure of financial deepening -- indicates economic activity has been sluggish this year, with stagnant real estate investments and bank deposits, despite growth in the volume of currency

Economy Nov. 27, 2019

South Korea’s GS Engineering and Construction said Monday that it has built a big data and artificial intelligence-based smart home system that could bolster security and add convenience for local apartment residents. The Xi AI platform, co-developed with its real estate development subsidiary Xi S&D, is programmed to offer customized living conditions for its users based on its analysis of relevant data. It has the ability to provide clean air by measuring the level of fine dust, cont

Technology Nov. 25, 2019

South Korean aerospace manufacturer and defense company LIG Nex1’s employees visited the Philippines on Nov. 18 to take part in an educational campaign and honor Filipino soldiers who fought in the 1950-53 Korean War. In collaboration with South Korean nonprofit organization World Human Bridge, the firm participated in a campaign that involved building a children’s library in Davao City on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao.  The campaign aims to improve the educational

Industry Nov. 25, 2019